Translate a PrestaShop store into Spanish
To open a PrestaShop 1.7 or 8 store in Spanish, export its translations as XLIFF (.xlf) files, one per domain, and upload each one to Manuce. You get back the same files with Spanish values, and a report listing what was translated and what was left untouched.
What it costs
For the language files of a PrestaShop store totalling about 8,000 words, into Spanish:
To understand, internal use.
Ready to send, by the technical specialist.
Cross-checked. For documents that commit you.
Price for one language, original layout included. VAT not applicable — article 293 B of the French General Tax Code (CGI). The exact quote, based on your file's word count, is shown before you pay.
What PrestaShop’s XLIFF files contain
PrestaShop 1.7 and 8 export translations by domain: the theme, checkout, emails, error messages and each module. Every domain produces its own .xlf file, uploaded separately. A file such as ShopThemeCheckout.xlf holds labels like “Proceed to checkout”, “Shipping method” or “I agree to the terms of service”.
These files cover the storefront interface, not the catalogue. Product descriptions, categories and content pages live in the database and are not part of this export, so plan their translation separately.
Values contain placeholders (%s, %d, %1$s) and sometimes markup (<strong>). These must survive intact: a lost placeholder in “%d item(s) left” shows Spanish shoppers a broken or meaningless message.
Spanish in an online shop: what changes
- Inverted punctuation. Questions open with ¿ and exclamations with ¡: “Got a discount code?” becomes
¿Tienes un código promocional?. A missing ¿ looks careless to any Spanish reader. - Spain or Latin America. Core retail words differ: ordenador / computadora, móvil / celular, cesta or carrito for basket. Decide which market the store mainly serves.
- Informal or formal address. Many Spanish (Spain) shops use tú (tu pedido); in much of Latin America usted (su pedido) is still common. Keep one choice across every domain, emails included.
- Length. Spanish runs longer than English: a button sized for “Add to cart” must now fit
Añadir al carrito. - Plurals and gender. Spanish uses the CLDR categories one, many and other. PrestaShop often splits singular and plural into two strings (“There is %d product.” / “There are %d products.”), each translated on its own. Adjectives agree: “New” becomes Nuevo or Nueva depending on a noun the isolated string may not show.
Checkout vocabulary to settle first
Fix these terms before reviewing, so shoppers see the same word from basket to confirmation email:
- Cart / basket:
Carrito(orCestain Spain) - Checkout:
Finalizar compraorTramitar pedido - Shipping costs:
Gastos de envío - Tax included:
IVA incluido - Right of withdrawal:
derecho de desistimiento - Voucher:
Cupón de descuento
The last two matter for legal wording. A translation of your terms of sale is not a sworn translation, and Manuce does not produce sworn translations. For text that binds the store towards Spanish-speaking customers, have the Spanish version checked by a lawyer.
What Manuce returns, and what it does not do
You receive the same .xlf file, ready to put back into PrestaShop: indentation, key order, quotation marks, comments, line endings, encoding and BOM are preserved. Only the values change to Spanish.
Each translated value is compared with the source. If %1$s or a <strong> tag is missing or altered and the mismatch persists, the source value is kept and the report flags it. A string left in the original language, clearly listed, is better than a broken placeholder on the payment page.
Not translated: keys, empty values, URLs, email addresses, numbers, colours, date formats, identifiers and anything marked as non-translatable. You pay for the words in the values only, keys and tags excluded.
Manuce does not translate your catalogue from the database, does not install anything in the store, and does not choose between Spain and Latin American Spanish for you.
Preparing the export and checking before launch
- Export only the domains in use: active theme, checkout, emails, installed modules. There is no point translating a disabled module.
- Settle the register (tú or usted) and target market before ordering, then use the free sample to judge the tone on a real paragraph.
- Read the report: every string left in the source language comes with a reason. Fix those by hand; they are usually sentences with several placeholders.
- After re-importing, walk through the Spanish store: add-to-cart button, order summary, payment page, confirmation email. Check that no label overflows and that ¿ and ¡ are in place.
- Check agreement: Agotado or Agotada depending on the product, and plural sentences with one item, then several.
In practice
- Export PrestaShop’s translations as XLIFF files, domain by domain.
- Upload each .xlf file to Manuce and choose Spanish as the target language.
- Review the quote and the free sample to confirm register and vocabulary.
- Download the translated files and report, then re-import them into PrestaShop.
- Test checkout and emails in Spanish before enabling the language.
Frequently asked questions
Are product pages translated along with the XLIFF files?
No. PrestaShop’s XLIFF export covers the interface (theme, checkout, emails, modules), not the catalogue stored in the database. Product and category descriptions need to be translated separately.
Spain or Latin American Spanish: which should I pick?
It depends on where most of your customers are. Words such as ordenador or computadora, cesta or carrito, and the tú or usted choice signal the variant. Use the free sample to check the tone, then have key labels reviewed by someone from your target market.
What happens if a placeholder like %s gets lost?
Every value is compared with the source. If a placeholder or tag still differs after translation, the source value is kept and the report says so, so you can handle it manually.
How are words counted for my language files?
Only the words in the values count, not keys or tags. The quote appears as soon as each file is uploaded, based on the exact word count.
Will my translated terms of sale be legally certified?
Manuce does not provide sworn translations. For terms of sale or legal notices aimed at Spanish-speaking customers, have the Spanish text validated by a lawyer.
The specialist in charge
This subject goes to Dédale, the technical specialist. See how it works.
The same file, into another language
Into Spanish, other files
See also
Try it on your own file, free
A sample of your file translated at the level you choose, before any payment. You judge, then you decide.